Spring spreader



. March 31, 1.925.

G. L.. E. KLINGBEIL SPRING sPREADEn Filed March l', 1924K.

2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Marchal. i925.

1,531,259 G. L. E. KLlNGBEIiL.

SPRING SPREADER Filed March 17 1924 2 shuts-@Mx 2 Patented Mar. 3l, 11925.

j UNITED STATES f lanzas vPn'r-lalvr orales.

QOTTLIEB 'L '.E. KLINGBEILLOF OMAHA, NEBRASKA.

SPRING SREADER.

l lApplication filed March 17, 1924. Serial No. 699,757'.V

ToiaZZ whom t may concern: Be it known that '.GoTfrLrnls L. Krane.- nnlL, a citizen of theUnited Stat-es,` vresiding at Omaha. in the countyl of Douglas and j State of Nebraska, has invented certain new and useful Improvements 1n Spring Spread- "ers, of which the following is :a specification.

Y This` invention` relates to spring spreaders and 1t hasv for its objecttoprovl'deaidevlce of V'simple and inexpensive Vconstruction `by means'ofwhich theleavesofvehicle springs and particularly automobile springs maybe separated enoughv to permit of the insertion of lubricant therebetween. VIt is a wel-l recognized fact that `mostof the squeak and much of the hard. riding of automobiles'is 'due te lackof sufficient lubrication ofthe leaves of the vehiclesprings.

It is now largely thefpractice to separate 'theleaves one atatime 'bycdriving a screw driver or like tool therebetween. The primary object of the present` invention is to provide a simple hand tool by means of which all theleaves ofthesprings may be separated simultaneously,Y so :that the -work of inserting a lubricanty will be expedited,

and this irrespective.` of thewi'dth of the leaves or their thicknesslA n Further objects and advantages of the invention will be set forth Vin `the detailed description which follows; Y

In the accompanying drawing;

Fig.. 1 is a plan view of a spring spreader constructed in accordance with the inventlon.

Fig. 2 1s an end view thereof.

Fig. 3, is a perspective view-of one of the4 jaws, hereinafter described. Y' l Fig. 4 is an inside face 'View .0f said jaw.V Fig. 5 is a horizontal sectional View through one of the jaws.

' Fig. 6 is a longltudinalsectional view through onev of thefjaws.

y rig. 7 is a View like rig. 2 but illustrating l 'a modified form of hinge joint between the aws.

Like numerals designate corresponding' parts in all of the figures of thedrawings.

The spring spreader of the present inven- 1 tion comprises a pair of jaws tiand.` ,In .the preferred embodiment of the invention the rear ends of these jaws are pivotally connected to links 7 and 8 which links are, in turn pivotally connected to each Vother lat 9. Thusthe jaws vare hingedly connected to each other but may remain in substantial parallelism with each other as they are moved toward and from each other.

. VThe structure illustrated in Fig, 6 Vls likev that illustrated in Fig. 1 except that the links '7 andl 8 are omitted'and a simple hinge connection is'substituted at`9a.

Each of'thejaws carries an upright'leg 13 which 'lies substantially at right angles to the `lnainibody portion of theY jaw. These legs' 1B' receive ybanks ofwedges 14, theends of which enter lbetween theleaves *of the vehicle `spring when the'jaws :are moved toward each other and underthe influence of a screwV 15. Oneiend of this screw fits loosely in a slot, 16 formed in oneof `the Y jaws, at its juncture with the corresponding `the opposite sides of the vertically slotted portions 22, of the legs. Shims 23 are disposed between the wedges and suitably space ferent thickness the wedges may be spaced aparty to any desired degree to accommodate the particular.thickness ofthe leaves Vof the spring being operated upon.

After the wedges have been slipped into place, closure plates 22a are inserted in the are secured in place by screws 23. If desired springs 24 may be disposed at the lower ends ofthe vertical, slotted portions of the legs for the banks of wedges to rest upon, whereby the banks of wedges as a whole will be more or less floatingly mounted so thatl they will seek that position where they will most readily enter betweenthe leaves of the spring as the jaws Vare yforced toward "each other under the action of they screw 15.

It is sometimes the case that the space between the spring and the body of the vehicle isso small as to prevent the insertion of a @bank Vof wedges between `the spring and body. In such cases the bank of wedges may The other end of the ythe wedges apart. By utilizing shiins of difj Vupper ends of the slots 22 of the legs and be omitted from one of the jaws and this element may be used as a mere backing up element during the time that the-other jaw with its bank of wedges is being forced into position to cause said wedges to enter between the leaves of the spring.

It will be seen that the jaws 5 and 6 hold Lie legs in assembled relation with respect to each other, leaving the sole duty of the screw to draw the jaws forcibly toward each other. By turning the screw in such direction as to permit separation of the jaws, the tool is brought to snch condition that the jaw 6 may be moved, to a limited extent freely along t ie bolt. lilith the aws moved to position of farthest separation the tool may he placed in such position that the banks of wedges lie upon the opposite sides of a spring, the leaves of which are to be separated. Then by turning the screw in the other' direction the jaws will be forced toward each other and banks of wedges will be forced between the leaves of the spring in a way which will be readily understood.

It is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the precise construction set forth, but that it includes within its purview whatever changes fairly come within either the terms or the spirit of the appended claims.

Having described my invention what I claim is:

l. A spring spreader comprising a pair of hingedly connected jaws, a pair of legs disposed substantially at right angles thereto, and having vertical slots formed therein, banks of wedges ioatingly mounted in each of said slots, and means for drawing said legs forcibly toward each other.

2. The combination with a pair of hingedly connected horizontally disposed jaws of a pair of vertically disposed legs carried thereby, each of said legs having a slot formed vertically therein which opensat the inner face of said legs, a screw for drawing said legs forcibly toward each other and a bank of wedges in each of said slots.

3. A spring spreader comprising a pair of hingedly connected jaws, a pairof legs one carried by each ot said jaws, said legs being disposed substantially at right angles to said jaws and having longitudinal slot-s formed therein which open at the inner faces of said legs, ribs projecting from the opposite sides of said slots, wedges engaged with said ribs, means for spacing said wedges apart and means for floatingly mounting 'iid wedges.

4. A structure as recited in claim 3 in combination with a screw loosely engaged in one of said legs and having threaded engagement with the other of said legs.

A structure as recited in claim 1 wherein the means for drawing said legs together comprises a screw having loose engagement with one of said legs and threaded engagement with the other of said legs.

ln testimony whereof he aftixes his signature in the presence of two witnesses.

GOTTLIEB L. E. KLINGBEIL. lvilitnesses A Rosa S. FRANKEL JN0. N. CRAWFORD. 

